What do we mean by advice or an assessment?

Assistive technology advisors

Assistive technology advisors can be:

allied health practitioners. For example audiologists, occupational therapists, orthoptists, orthotists/prosthetists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists
assistive technology mentors, who have a recognised qualification in assistive technology advice
orientation and mobility specialists for the vision sector
continence nurses
rehabilitation engineers.

You’ll need to use the expertise of your assistive technology advisor to choose a safe and appropriate item.

Your assistive technology advisor will need to provide independent advice.

Sometimes your medical practitioner or specialist may have enough assistive technology experience to provide advice on what you need.

But they will usually refer you to another more experienced assistive technology advisor.

You might also need to get an assessment from an assistive technology assessor.

Assistive technology assessors are specialist assistive technology advisors.

They need to have a university or equivalent degree relevant for providing assistive technology assessments.

They also need to be working within the standards set by a professional registration organisation such as the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).

Allied health practitioners, nurse continence specialists, orientation and mobility specialists, and professional rehabilitation engineers all meet this requirement for their area of assistive technology expertise.

We will tell you what sort of advice you need before you buy your assistive technology.

To help you understand what you need to do, check out the fact sheet Understand assistive technology evidence, advice, assessments and quotes .

What should you do with the advice or assessment?

You can keep the advice or upload it to your NDIS myplace portal if the item is:

low cost assistive technology
mid cost assistive technology

You should send your quote and/or assessment to us at [email protected] if:

it’s for high cost assistive technology
if you need us to look at or accept a quote for a high cost item.

When we have funded low cost assistive technology that is low risk in your plan, we suggest you get advice before you buy the item.

This will make sure the item is right for you.

The advice can help you learn about assistive technology you didn’t know about.

Or it can help you find assistive technology that’s cheaper or works better for you.

For low cost items that are higher risk, you’ll need to get written advice.

The advice needs to be provided by an assistive technology advisor before you buy an item funded in your plan.

This is to make sure you get the right item for you and it is safe for you to use.

What do you need to do before you buy mid cost assistive technology?

For all mid cost assistive technology approved in your plan, you need to get written advice from an assistive technology advisor before you buy the item.

For mid cost items that are low risk, you need to get your advisor to make sure the item is right for you.

For mid cost items that are higher risk, you’ll also need advice about how to set up and adjust the item so you can use it safely.

For all mid cost assistive technology approved in your plan, you need to get written advice from an assistive technology advisor before you buy the item.

For mid cost items that are low risk, you need to get your advisor to make sure the item is right for you.

For mid cost items that are higher risk, you’ll also need advice about how to set up and
adjust the item so you can use it safely.

Example

Sally needs a shower chair as she’s finding it more difficult to shower by herself.

Sally and her occupational therapist believe Sally will need a shower chair in the next few months.

They aren’t sure of the exact chair she needs. Sally’s occupational therapist writes a letter to say why Sally needs the shower chair.

It will be a mid cost assistive technology item. Sally gives us the letter.

Sally’s planner has enough evidence in the occupational therapist’s letter to show the shower chair is reasonable and necessary.

Sally’s planner includes funding for mid cost assistive technology in her plan.

Her plan includes a price range for the shower chair from $1,600 to $5,600.

But there’s a bit more funding if she needs a more expensive shower chair.

Her plan also includes a note that Sally will need written advice before buying the item.

Sally’s planner knows the chair will be under $15,000 and doesn’t need to ask for a quote.

The planner explains to Sally she will need to work with her occupational therapist to make sure she buys the right item.

Once the funding is in her plan, Sally gets written advice from her occupational therapist to help her choose the right shower chair.

Sally contacts different providers to get the best price for her shower chair and buys it from the funding in her plan.

She keeps a copy of the letter in case the item isn’t right for her.

She knows we might ask for the letter to make sure she got the right advice if the item doesn’t meet her needs.

She might also need to take the letter back to her occupational therapist if the advice was wrong.

For all high cost items you’ll need to get a written assessment before we can include it in your plan.

You must have an assessment before you buy the item.

This is to make sure high cost or complex items are appropriate, safe for you to use and have a long term benefit for you.

Your assessment needs to be completed by an assistive technology assessor.

The assessment needs to show what extra support you need to set it up.

It will also need to say what training you need to use the assistive technology.

The assessment will need to make sure the assistive technology is safe for you to use.

What do we mean by advice or an assessment?

On this page:

Assistive technology advisors

What should you do with the advice or assessment?

Example